There are numerous known boxes with hinged portions for opening and reclosing. These boxes can be described generally as having four sides and two ends, the reclosable portion usually provided at one of the ends of the box.
One of the simplest types of reclosable boxes is the box with a perforated end flap like the one disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,142,635 to Capo et al. Such flaps are usually provided with an edge tab of some kind which is insertable in a slot to thereby reclose the box after the perforated flap is torn open.
Some other known boxes are more elaborate, having relatively large hinged covers with skirts or depending flanges which cover the box on its sides, unlike a simple flap. Examples of these types of boxes can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,048,052 to Tolaas; U.S. Pat. No. 4,421,236 to Lowe; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,570,790 to Turnage.
Still another type of reclosable box is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,733,796 to Halverstadt et al. This last type is similar to the large hinged covers with skirts, but here the skirts of the cover actually form a portion of the sides of the box.
Each type of box has its advantages and disadvantages, usually low cost of manufacture or security of the closure, one of these being sacrificed to provide the other. However, aside from these considerations, some types of boxes are better suited for particular products. For example, the simple end flap is widely used in boxes containing pourable material, whereas the larger hinged covers are more typically used in boxes containing larger solid contents such as cigarettes, or contents which are not pourable such as ice cream.
An important feature of all of the boxes mentioned above is a locking means of some type, that is some means to keep the hinged closable portion of the box securely closed until it is intentionally reopened. As previously mentioned, in the case of the simple flap, the locking means is usually an end tab insertable into a slot. In the case of the larger hinged covers, known locking means include a slit or cut line in the front skirt of the cover which engages with a locking flange in the form of a tab extending from a side of the box as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,048,052. Often the locking means is simply the surface contact (or nesting) of the skirt portion of the cover with the sides of the box as shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,570,790 and 4,421,236. Still another locking means is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,733,796 where a pair of lips and grooves in the cover portion engage a similar pair of lips and grooves in a side portion of the box.
Each of these locking means has advantages and disadvantages often associated with the competing interests of security of locking and reduced cost of manufacture. Moreover, some locking means can be adapted only to particular box designs.
In some cases, the locking means have the disadvantage of being difficult to use. For example, the flap type opening with the slot insertable tab requires the user to deliberately insert the tab into the slot in order to provide any locking at all.
Of all of the known boxes discussed above, two have a particular advantage that the others do not have. The reclosable openings shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,421,236 and 4,142,635 can both be described as pouring spouts. Although not disclosed in these patents, such a pouring spout opening can be used to dispense a measured portion of contents such as pasta. For example, spaghetti type pasta aligned in a box, perpendicular to the opening, will empty from the box in an amount directly proportional to the size of the opening. If the box is tilted to stop pouring before the pasta is completely free from the box, a measured portion can be obtained and removed manually. Unfortunately, of all the boxes discussed above, those with the pouring spout type opening provide the least secure locking means.